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Campaigns end with rallies in Jakarta, Tangerang
The presidential and legislative elections, which are to be held at the same time on April 17, are now in a three-day cooling-off period.
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Supporters of Joko (Antara/Widodo S. Jusuf)
H
undreds of thousands of people flocked to Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Senayan, Central Jakarta, on Saturday. A number of musicians, including Slank, a legendary Indonesian bands, joined in on the euphoria of a political campaign event held for incumbent President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo and running mate Ma’ruf Amin.
Challengers Prabowo Subianto and Sandiaga Uno on Saturday preferred to visit popular Islamic preacher Abdullah Gymnastiar together after Sandiaga attended a campaign event at the Ahmad Yani city hall in Tangerang, Banten.
Both camps wrapped up their campaigns on Saturday, as that marked the end of the open campaign period that started on March 24, as well as their eight-month political campaigns traveling across the country.
The presidential and legislative elections, which are to be held at the same time on April 17, are now in a three-day cooling-off period.
During the campaigning, Sandiaga almost always held forums to which he invited young voters, among them the so-called millennials, in a bid to learn their aspirations, especially those related to job opportunities. He also often gathered women together, whom he referred to as “emak-emak” (mothers), to get their input about the prices of stall foods in the markets.
Prabowo, meanwhile, was sometimes spotted visiting clerics and ulema at a number of Islamic boarding schools, mostly on Java.
During the campaign rally, Prabowo and Sandiaga spent more time visiting regions in eastern Indonesia, including Sorong and Merauke in Papua, the country’s easternmost province. Regions in eastern Indonesia are said to be Jokowi’s strongest support bases.
